Message from the Master

The Worshipful Company of Bowyers can trace its detailed history back to 1363 when the craft of making longbows first appeared on the list of taxation for the City of London. Prior to that the first bowyer to be recorded is that of Ivo le Bowyre in 1293.

During the hundred years war and the great victories at Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt, when the longbow was at its zenith, the Company enjoyed unparalleled success supplying the medieval archer with the tools of his trade.

Today the Bowyers' Company prides itself with being involved in many charitable and educational activities and upholding the traditions of the City of London by supporting the Lord Mayor, Sheriffs and the Corporation of London in promoting the City in a modern day environment.

I trust you will find our web site interesting and informative and if you would like to know more about us please feel free to contact the Clerk.

The Reverend John Hayton TD, - Master Bowyer

Waterloo Supper, 11 Feb 2015

A record turnout of almost 60 Bowyers and their guests attended the company's 'Waterloo Supper' to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Wellington's victory over Napoleon in 1815. Assembled in Bangers Bar & Grill on Wednesday 11 February they were entertained to a fascinating presentation from Liveryman and newly-appointed Court Assistant, Major General Andrew Sharpe.

Andrew has made a life-long study of those momentous events which took place one June day in the fields and forests of Flanders - events which so dramatically altered the history of Europe. He has spent many hours walking the battlefield and is acknowledged as one of the foremost experts on the subject.

With the precision of a military strategist, he outlined both sides' battle plans, lucidly describing the various manoeuvres and engagements in laymens' terms and carrying the narrative through from the early skirmishes to the bloody denouement. But it was his witty and colourful anecdotes about the personal lives of the key players in the drama which brought the subject alive. Arthur Wellesley, the philandering Duke of Wellington; Jerome Bonaparte, Napoleon's dissolute younger brother; Field Marshal von Blucher, the battle-hardened Prussian veteran; Prince William of Orange, "Billy the Frog"; and, of course, "The Little Corporal" himself.

The undoubted star of the show was Napoleon's deputy, the courageous, flamboyant, foul-mouthed, Marshal Ney - Le Rougeaud, Le Brave des Braves. Andrew closed his talk with a moving account of Ney's execution, when the heroic soldier, although innocent of treason, took charge of the firing squad and gave the order to end his life because the guard commander was too overcome by emotion.

Andrew Sharpe possesses that rare quality in a public speaker - the ability to leave his listeners wanting more. He spoke for over an hour yet held his audience spellbound so that they scarcely noticed the time passing.

The evening closed with a splendid three-course meal and a convivial time was had by all.

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Welcome to the website of the Worshipful Company of Bowyers, a Livery Company with centuries of tradition and a martial history which intimately connects us with, among many other clashes of arms, the Hundred Years War and the famous battles of Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt.